Skype Call 689
by Aichurro
Summary: The journey of Armin and Eren's long distance relationship; unable to hug and protect each other when they desperately need it in their hard life.


Eren hated school with all of his heart. The only reason he bared through it was for his family. Both he and his adopted sister Mikasa worked and went to school. Their father left and their mother was disabled, so they had to support their family. Luckily, their boss took pity on the two and gave them raises so that they were able to support each other. Since their mom was disabled, they would get a monthly paycheck. So they were well off, but Eren and Mikasa wanted to make sure they had enough. While they had no chance of going to college without a full scholarship, they were happy with their education. Eren had a laptop that he spent most of his time on, finding online friends, despite his mother's protest. With his money left over, he'd donate it online towards charities.

Eren had gotten home one day, did his homework, and locked himself in his room. He pulled his laptop out and went online to his blog. He had a few followers, but not a lot. He had met a kid a few hundred miles away from him, Armin Arlert, who he soon grew close to. They Skyped a lot, talking for hours on end. When Eren got the bravery to video chat for the first time, he was shocked to see Armin. He was a little on the small side, with a short blond bob, blue eyes, a small nose and face, and the cutest smile. Armin himself was surprised by Eren, who was a medium height with brown hair, goldish green eyes, and a rough-looking appearance; but seeing him happy made Armin's heart flutter.

Mikasa once was there for the chat, so Armin and Mikasa picked on Eren the entire time. Whenever Eren would get playfully upset with Armin, he'd threaten to disconnect. The two of them read each other's blog entries and help one another. Armin wasn't the richest, his parents died when he was young, so he lived with his grandfather. Eren once sent Armin $100 through paypal to pay for food and clothing. Armin had gotten the money during a Skype call, broke down, and cried. He thanked Eren a hundred times, but Eren was happy just seeing Armin happy.

Eren was afraid to admit he was in love with Armin.

* * *

Armin made his way home, clutching his bag tightly. Some boys threatened to beat him up, so he was being precautious. He wanted to get home, do his homework, do his chores, and get on Skype with Eren. He had told other kids about Eren and he was sure Eren did the same. Luckily, he got home before he could be attacked, so he started on his chores. He had to cook and clean since his grandfather couldn't. He used to be able to do everything, but now that he was old, he couldn't. Armin knew he would pass soon, but he refused to accept it.

He finished his homework and got on his laptop. He was on a webpage, staring at it for a few minutes. It was a plane ticket website, but Armin had the options set to Armin and Mikasa's hometown. He knew he'd never be able to afford a ticket to surprise them with his appearance, so he only liked getting the satisfaction and joy at looking at the ticket. He had his blog open and wrote an entry.

_Today was a rough day. Some guys threatened to beat me up after school. I got home safe, so I guess that's a plus. _

_#personal_

He entered 'post' and knew nobody other than Eren would read it. Armin had tried to convince Mikasa to get one, but she was too busy on her phone to run a blog. He refreshed his page and laughed at a picture that Eren had posted.

It was of Mikasa in a bathroom, holding her phone up to the mirror taking a picture. Eren was in the background, making fun of Mikasa. Armin laughed loudly and had to cover his mouth. _'Way to photobomb, Eren.'_

Armin heard his grandfather calling him, and Armin cried out when he realized he forgot to cook dinner. "Coming!" He shut his laptop and ran downstairs.

Armin considered himself a good cook. He hadn't killed anyone yet, so it was eatable, right? He tied his apron around his waist and his neck and pulled his supplies out from the cabinet. He decided to make soup, so he cut some vegetables up and put them with a pot of cooked meat. He filled it with water and seasoning and let it simmer. It was a fast dinner, but Armin thought it was good.

He rushed back to his room and logged onto his blog and Skype. He noticed Eren was on, so he messaged him immediately.

_[armin] Hi!_

_[eren] whats with the greet_

_[armin] sorry_

_[eren] how was school 2day?_

_[armin] ehhhhh EHHHHHHHHH can we video chat?_

_[eren] I guess_

A message popped up on the screen that Eren was calling. He answered and smiled at Eren. "Mikasa's at work, so we're alone." He said.

Armin raised a thick eyebrow and laughed. "So what are we supposed to do alone?" Eren turned red.

"I-I didn't mean it like that, I swear!" Eren shook his hands and covered his face. Armin laughed. "So what happened at school?"

The blond shrugged and sighed. "Some guys were picking on me. They threatened to beat me up. They didn't get to me after school, but I'm scared for tomorrow." He explained. Armin rubbed a bruise on his arm. "They've hit me before and they hit hard. Eren, could you protect me?" He didn't realize he said the last sentence.

Eren smiled. "Of course I'll protect you! I won't let anyone hurt you!" He clenched his fist, grinning. Armin realized what he said and covered his face.

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to say that!" He cried, face dark red. Armin hated himself for saying stuff he didn't mean to. Eren shut him up by laughing loudly again, but in return made Armin go red again.

"You're fine, Armin. I've done the same thing before. I've called a teacher mom before!" He tried to make the blond feel better.

Armin giggled and smiled. "I guess that's a little worse. So how was your school day?"

Eren sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I may or may not have failed a test today." He looked away from Armin's shocked face.

The blond slapped his hands on his crossed legs and cried, "But Eren, you have to do well in school for your family and job! Speaking of job, don't you have work today?" He asked. Armin played with a lock of his hair and studied its light blond color.

Eren laughed quietly. "Well you see…I took the day off."

"Why did you do that?"

"I wanted to talk to you." Cue another blush, "It's been stressful here for a while. We don't have any communication with dad so we can't get child support, and mom's been in a lot of pain with her legs. We're fine money wise, but Mikasa and I are worried about mom's health." Eren explained. "We're gonna go to the doctor's when Mikasa gets home, so I'll text you what's going on."

Armin nodded. "Alright. Chat later?"

Eren smiled. "Of course! We're almost at our 700th call! It's call #687 now!"

The boy's mouth opened. "Oh my God! I didn't know we've talked that many times!"

The German teen heard Mikasa walking up the stairs and said, "She's here! I have to go; bye Armin!" He jumped up and grabbed his jacket.

"Bye!" Armin waved before disconnecting. He looked at the time, 8:30, and went downstairs to his grandfather. "It's time for your meds, grandfather." He went into the kitchen and retrieved a small syringe, needle, and a glass bottle. He cleaned the needle and filled the syringe with the liquid.

His grandfather was sitting in a chair at his desk, reading. Armin gently took his arm and told him, "It'll hurt a little." He winced a little when the needle jabbed into his skin. When Armin pulled out the metal needle, his grandfather sighed.

"A-Armin." He said, getting said boy's attention. "You know I'm not going to make it for long, right?" His smile was warm. Armin looked down at his feet, knowing his grandfather wasn't immortal. "When I pass, please don't mourn me. Be happy I'm somewhere better."

Armin shivered and grabbed his grandfather's hand. "But I'll be sad, knowing you're not here. I'll be all alone…" He remembered his father and mother's face. He was afraid of being alone and without family. Where would he go?

"You'll be fine, Armin." His grandfather touched his face and smiled. "You look just like your mother." Armin tried not to cry. "I'll be gone soon, but please don't-"

"How couldn't I?" Armin interrupted, voice shaking. "You're the only family I have left! Mom and Dad left when I was little, so I lived with you since then!" He wrapped his arms around his grandfather and sobbed into his chest. His blond hair was messy and his pale skin red. "Please don't go!"

His grandfather patted his head and rubbed his thumb on Armin's face. "Death is a part of life. I don't know when I'll join my wife again in death, but please make the most of when I'm alive."

Armin sniffed and got himself up. "C-come on. Bed time." He grabbed his grandfather's arm and helped him up.

To the way to his bedroom, Armin thought about his family. He remembered his father picking him up and spinning him around, his mother reading to him and dressing him up in cute clothes, his family cooking together and laughing. He missed it greatly. Even when he would get in trouble with his mom or dad and be spanked, they still loved him and he loved them. Now that they were gone, he missed his mom pinching his cheek and his dad lifting him up. He missed their warm hugs. They passed years ago, but Armin still pictures himself at 15 years old with them together. Now that he lived with his grandfather, he would tell Armin about his parents and how much they helped the world before they were shot overseas. Armin remembered the day they left for the plane, him hugging their legs, begging them not to go. He was only nine at the time, but he knew something bad would happen. His mother smiled and patted his head, just like grandfather, and told him everything would be okay. His father told him that he'd bring him back their journals to read when they'd return.

They never did.

Armin got the news when he was at school. His grandfather was in the office and sobbing like a lost child. Armin didn't know what had happened, but he felt sorrow in the air. It was explained to him that his parents were shot by the police in the country they went to because they had broken a law. Armin didn't know until later that they were trying to rise against the government and apparently it was punishable by death. After the news got around town, Armin was ignored and hated by everyone. When they were talking about uprisings in history, he would be slapped on the head by the students and ignored by the teacher. He was alone and afraid after his parent's death, afraid of losing loved ones and afraid of being alone.

That was until he met Eren.

He met him when he got his blog, and saw a boy posting funny pictures of him and his sister. His name was Eren, her's Mikasa. Armin followed him and was followed back by Eren. They messaged each other a couple of times until Armin asked him if he had a Skype. They exchanged names and talked to each other hours at a time.

Armin went to his room and opened his laptop. Eren wasn't on, but he called him.

Call #688

He didn't answer obviously, but he left a video for Eren to see. "Hey Eren. I know you're at the hospital with your mom now, but I just need to talk to someone, anyone right now. Grandfather is going to die soon…so please…Eren…I need someone right now." Armin wiped his eyes. His voice was breaking and his lip was quivering. "Please call me back when you get home or see this, Eren."

He grabbed his pillow and cried into it for a few hours until he fell asleep.

* * *

Eren bounced his leg impatiently in the waiting room of the hospital. His mother had been taken to the examination room with Mikasa, since they don't allow males to be in the same room as females (which Eren found stupid and ridiculous). He had forgotten his phone in the car, but he was too nervous and scared to go and get it.

When his mother was wheeled out in a wheelchair, Mikasa was pushing her, Eren ran to the girls and demanded to know what was wrong. "W-What happened? Are you okay?"

His mother smiled and grabbed his hand. "I'm fine, Eren. I just have a small infection on my nerve in my legs. I won't be walking for a while, I suppose."

"What?" Eren's voice cracked. He didn't want to see his mother in pain and unable to do what she wants. "You'll be fine, right?"

Carla looked down at her lap, her hand still entwined with Eren's. Mikasa inhaled deeply and explained. "Eren…no. She won't be fine. The infection will go higher and higher until it reaches her waist. When it does, she'll be paralyzed from there down, unless we amputate her." The girl's voice and lip quivered.

Eren's eyes went wide with disbelief. "You mean…she'll loose her legs? Mikasa? Mom?"

Carla smiled, eyes still sad. "The surgery's next month. That's soon enough to where the infection won't impact my upper legs and I have a chance of recovering if it happens next month."

The boy tried not to cry. "But you'll live, right?"

"There's a 50/50 chance of the infection still continuing to the rest of my body." Carla explained.

Eren knew exactly what would happen if the disease got to the rest of her body. He wrapped his arms around her, in the middle of a waiting room, and hugged her tightly. He sobbed into her shoulder. "Please don't die, mom! Mom, please!" His voice was high and he was terrified of losing her.

Mikasa rubbed Eren's back, trying to prevent herself from crying also.

All they could do was remain strong for now.

* * *

Eren got home and slammed his door shut. He was angry and needed to vent to someone, anyone. He pulled his laptop out and opened Skype. He saw that Armin had sent him a video message, so he watched it.

"_Eren please…"_

He was crying, begging Eren to get online so he could talk to him. Eren went online and called Armin immediately.

Skype call #689

Armin answered as soon as Eren called. "Eren." His eyes were red and shiny with tears. "H-how's your mom?" He was still clutching his pillow.

Eren exhaled sharply and looked away. "S-she could-" A sob escaped his throat. His eyes were rimmed with red, trying to hold his emotions back. His mother, Mikasa, and Armin didn't need to see him cry.

The blond and brunette went quiet. "Do you think everything will be okay?" Armin said, barely in a whisper. "They won't let us live alone, Eren. Do you think we'd still be able to talk?"

Eren shook his head. "I don't know."

"First Grandfather, now you. Why am I loosing everyone I love?" Armin's voice broke. "Everyone's leaving." He held the pillow tighter to his chest.

"I'm not going to let that happen, Armin. I'm not going to let our friendship diminish." He glanced at his clock, it was late at night for the both of them.

Armin buried his head into his pillow, eventually looking up. "Will you stay with me?"

"Huh?"

"Can we talk until we fall asleep? We both need it." Armin picked at his nails. His face was slightly red.

Eren nodded. "Of course."

"…"

"…"

"Hey Armin."

Armin looked up from his bed. "Yeah?"

Eren was glancing around his room, nervous. "Since we have the time, I need to tell you something."

"What?"

Eren smiled and brushed his bangs back, wishing he could do the same to Armin. "I love you."

Armin blushed and looked away. "Me too."

"Good night, Armin."

"Night, Eren."

* * *

**_A/N: I DID NOT MEAN TO MAKE THIS PART SO ARMIN FOCUSED SO IM SO SORRY I DID /NOT/ MEAN FOR THIS TO HAPPEN_**


End file.
